The high ranking is a credit to Kauaʻi CC’s ability to serve students. “The ranking highlights some of the great work and accomplishments of our faculty, staff and students, and Kauaʻi CC can be proud for our achievements in best educational practices and student success,” says Chancellor Helen Cox.

“The CCSSE information provides a very clear view of how Kauaʻi CC students perceive their college experience, and that’s a helpful lens for those at the college to use to find out what they are doing well, and a useful way for the community to see how the college is doing,” said Cox.

Kauaʻi CC excelled in the support for learning, active and collaborative learning, academic challenge and student effort categories, followed closely by first-year retention rate. “We take pride in creating a supportive learning environment that helps students both learn important skill sets and reach their dreams,” said Cox.

According to the article, CCSSE “tracks the numbers of books and papers students are assigned, the amount of interaction with faculty, the hours spent preparing for class, and the quality of support services.” CCSSE also looks at the relationship the student has with their school. “Colleges that connect with their students and challenge them to do good work get particularly high marks. . .This shows that excellence is not an accident—the best community colleges have deeply ingrained cultures of academic achievement.”